Marcus Thomas Chief Operating Officer Scott Chapin Promoted to President
We seek the many
Ok, so here's our story: We're approaching 300 professionals in our offices in Cleveland and Cincinnati, Ohio, Buenos Aires, Argentina and Santiago, Chile. We're one of America’s leading independent, full-service, integrated advertising agencies. And we're recognized for our creative, media, public relations, social media, digital strategy and technology thinking and work.
Our approach is help our clients create more experiences and fewer ads. More value and fewer interruptions. We start by helping our clients understand the human journey – not just the buyer journey – their customers and prospects are on.
We think brands that create value for people – that make people’s lives better even in some small way – will be the winners moving forward. These brands will develop long-term relationships with much better lifetime ROI. The industry’s current short-term focus on isolated data, on clicks and likes and transactions, works against this. Some say bucking this is impossible. We say, bring it on.
-
millionCapitalized Billings
-
Employees
-
Dogs
our commitment to diversity
Great ideas know no color. They don’t belong to or prescribe to any one religion, racial makeup, ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation. Great ideas transcend. That’s what makes them great. The same can be said of our employees. Their differences are their strengths. And we leverage those strengths to create work that resonates.
Our affinity groups help create impactful cultural change. They also help us attract, engage, develop and retain a diverse team at Marcus Thomas.
affinity groups
Parents@Work
We are working parents and caregivers, helping one another navigate the many intersections of work and family life with advice, support and resources.
The Table
We bring important issues to The Table. We want everyone to have a seat at The Table. We lay everything out on The Table.
Black at MT
The mission of Black at MT is to foster a workplace where all Black employees can thrive.
LGBTQIA+
We provide a welcoming, inclusive and safe environment for all persons, all genders and all sexual orientations. Together, we can influence the agency’s culture, work and community through advocacy and education.
Intercultural
Our mission is to celebrate the cultures our global staff members represent, create a sense of community, and discuss our experiences working in a cross-cultural environment.
Young Professionals@MT
Elevating young professionals at Marcus Thomas and creating space for connection through vibrant community, meaningful interactions and career development.
executive leadership team
To take on impossible challenges, you need a big group of people who know how to make big plans and, most importantly, who know how to bring big perspective and big expertise to the task at hand.
Jim is a finance executive and proactive business partner with 30+ years of industry experience in professional services, manufacturing, insurance, and public accounting. Background working in large and small publicly held companies, domestic and international. Track record of process and organizational improvements, strategic planning, and team development.
Jim Bower
Chief Financial Officer
When Scott entered the agency world 20 years ago, a background in computer science would have been considered unusual. Today, as Chief Executive Officer of a 200+ person agency in an increasingly digital/data-driven environment, this background is just about perfect.
Scott Chapin
Chief Executive Officer
As the agency’s fourth PR department hire in 1992, Heidi saw something special in Marcus Thomas. She took the helm of the group in 2015, overseeing its growth and diversification into a team of 27 who have won multiple silver and bronze Anvils, REGGIE and Drum awards. A star in her own right, her “Sleep Naked” work for U.S. Cotton was featured in the latest edition of The Dynamics of Persuasion, and she is president of the Cleveland chapter of PRSA. Her care for the people of Marcus Thomas, in addition to her PR leadership, was recognized earlier this year when she was named Chief Relationship Officer and has resulted in the agency’s being an Ad Age Best Place to Work for the past four years.
Heidi Modarelli-Frank, APR
Chief Relationship Officer
Lori oversees human resources, talent and management development for the agency. She has 20 years’ experience leading recruitment, training, organizational development and employee relations initiatives in a variety of industries. Lori is a member of the Society for Human Resource Management. She is a past recipient of an Archer Award (excellence in human resources) for innovation, and is a past speaker at DisruptHR. She also serves on the board of Joyful Noise Music School. She holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Westminster College.
Lori Hedrick
Senior Vice President, People Team
Jason has experienced digital from every angle, which is why he is able to consult, lead and deliver even the most complex projects with ease. He joined Marcus Thomas with the 2011 acquisition of DigiKnow, one of the country’s pioneering digital agencies. Jason built a site and loyalty program for Nestlé that became the largest online community of bakers, created a digital sampling program for Dexcom across seven countries and nine languages, and developed the first livestream ad with the 24/24 program for Sherwin-Williams. Key to his success is his ability to simplify the tasks at hand for each person on the team.
Jason Hutchison
Senior Vice President Digital Ecosystems
Raf believes in taking informed risks, using data to drive action and delivering optimized cross-platform messaging in sync with the human journey. Having a media resume shaped in San Francisco, California, and Atlanta, Georgia, with clients like SEGA and Caesars Properties, he brings over 20 years of experience in all things media and is known for being an emerging media fanatic. Under his leadership, Marcus Thomas has built an award-winning media department that has become the largest media buyer in Ohio. With its own real-time media trading desk, Marcus Thomas is one of only 2% of agencies that are Google Premier Partners. No wonder Raf was recognized by Campaign US as a 40 Over 40 honoree in 2020.
Raphael Rivilla
Chief Media OfficerPato has been a dedicated consultant and entrepreneur in the digital marketing space for the past two decades, positioning the agency at the forefront of innovation since the founding of premier Salesforce consulting company Devs United in 2015. Over the past 10 years, Pato has grown and managed a team of more than 50 people across North and South America; provided dynamic solutions to a diverse array of brands, including Reebok, Disney and Fanatics; and established opportunities to support future talent through the creation of Devs United Academy. As the SVP of Product Innovation his focus is to help Marketers, CMOs and CTOS to extend the capabilities of their existing investments, through the launch of the agency’s latest AI-powered marketing automation software, Nucleus.
Patricio Sapir
Partner, SVP, Product Innovation
A creative director who solves problems in unexpected ways, Jim has helped reposition canned pumpkin as a superfood, created a 10-story product demo complete with giant 3D ants for Black Flag, worked on campaigns for a children’s hospital that The New York Times called “bold and unvarnished,” and crafted the most-searched Super Bowl spot of the game for Dexcom. One who believes in using his voice, he’s been published in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and The Washington Post as well as been a guest commentator for National Public Radio on a variety of topics, including advertising. His creative work has been recognized by The One Show, National Addys and Communication Arts.
Jim Sollisch
Executive Creative Director
With a steadfast desire to prove big ideas can’t be bound by geography or holding company, Jamie has been an integral part of shaping Marcus Thomas into an agency that turns ideas into integrated experiences that provide value for brands and customers alike. His work has aired on the Super Bowl, brought a CEO to tears, and been so innovative that he was awarded a patent. Asking his team “what if” has led to them winning One Show Pencils, national ADDYs, the prestigious 4A’s O’Toole Award and numerous others. As much as he loves doing work worthy of recognition, the growth Marcus Thomas clients have enjoyed is his true measure of success. In honor of those who helped him find his path, Jamie always finds time to give to students and is one of the founders of the Marcus Thomas Legacy Education Fund.
Jamie Venorsky
President, Chief Creative Officer
Ian is a tech-savvy business leader who has helped Marcus Thomas grow successfully on two continents. Inspired by technology’s rapid pace of change, he offers our clients applied experience and a comprehensive understanding of technology and its potential intersections with business. Ian masterminded the evolution of our work with the Ohio Lottery into the specialized solution for lotteries around the country that he leads today, and his work with the Cleveland Guardians led to a series of digital innovations that became the model for all of Major League Baseball.
Ian Verschuren
Chief Technology Officer
Known as an innovator in PR circles, Amber has constantly pushed the industry forward to build her clients’ reputations. Clients like Citi, Conagra, Jim Beam, U.S. Cotton and Nestlé have relied on her leadership, using tools like social listening and influencer marketing far before others – and they’ve seen Amber’s efforts reflected in their bottom lines. A frequent speaker, industry thought leader and recipient of more than 50 awards, she became the youngest partner at Marcus Thomas in 2016, leading the social media practice. A proven champion for working mothers, Amber was invited to be an inaugural participant in the 4A’s Mothers@Agencies program.
Amber Zent, APR
Senior Vice President, Social Media
